LIR HEANet User Group for Libraries Seminar ~ Emerging Technologies for Libraries and Education ~ 8th Dec 2006

Libraries and Blogs: new communication tools for academic librariansJosh Clark, University College Dublin

Diarmuid Stokes, UCD

UCD Library An Coláiste Ollscoil, Baile Átha Cliath

Leabharlann UCD

Blogs???Blogs???

What is a Blog?

• from the term “Web log” invented by Jorn Barger in 1997

• A website that contains entries, or “posts”, displayed in reverse chronological order

• Posts often contain text, images, video and links to other websites

• Readers can comment on posts, making it an interactive experience

• Includes RSS feeds

Blogs can be many different things….

• Personal diary or journal

• News and information service

• Ongoing project report

• Photo gallery

• Collection of links

• Etc.

Why Blog?

• Communication

• Collaboration

• Free and (relatively) simple!

• Don’t need to be a “techie”

• Effective Broadcast tool

• Often quicker than your “News” page!

Why Blog?

• Public relations & library marketing tool

• Can be more dynamic than your website

• Take advantage of “Web 2.0”

• Attract and engage younger users

(“digital natives”, or “millennials”)

UCD Science Library Blog<http://ucdscience.blogspot.com>

• Created in April 2005

• Uses Blogger software (free)

• Originally 2 librarians, now 3 team members

• (Try to) update regularly (150+ posts so far)

• Covers all sciences

UCD Science blog screenshot here

Reasons for creating our blog

• Communicating science library news and events

• Advertising training sessions

• Announcing new e-resources (especially IReL!)

• Recent acquisitions (monographs and journals)

• Resources on the web

Our Target Audience

• Students of all science subjects

• Science staff (academics)

• The wider academic library community(?)

Statistics• We have an RSS feed AND a web counter

• 59 subscribers(?)

Statistics

RSS Feeds & Feed Readers

StatisticsSitemeter – free statistical service that tracks

where the viewers are coming from….

StatisticsSitemeter – free statistical service that tracks

where the viewers are coming from….

StatisticsSitemeter – free statistical service that tracks

where the viewers are coming from….

Notes on updating…

• Try to update regularly

• Always something to post

• Work as a team

• Collaboration helps!

Notes on updating…

SO…..SO…..

feeling feeling

UNDER PRESSUREUNDER PRESSURE

to post?to post?

WhyWhy

NotNot

Collaborate?Collaborate?

Marketing your library blog…

• It’s the key to success!

• Include in your library orientation & information skills sessions

• email your users (academic staff)

• Why not include your blog URL in your email signature?

Marketing your library blog

• Advertise on your library website and/or newsletter

• Include a link from your subject portal(s)

• Create posters for your library

• Place your blog on blog directories, i.e. Technorati

Overall Effectiveness?

• Positive feedback from academic staff

• Employing free statistical software

• Showing hits from all over the world (including UCD!)

• Still, could use more marketing…

Overall Effectiveness?

• We’re also referenced in

Slebodnik, Maribeth. Marketing and Outreach for Science & Technology Libraries: Selected Resources. Issues in Science & Technology Librarianship. No. 45, Winter 2006.

Found at:

<http://www.istl.org/06-winter/internet2.html>

Overall Effectiveness?

Mentioned by Michael Stephens of

“Tame the Web”

http://www.tametheweb.com

Some Irish academic blogs

• University College Dublin (academic staff blog) http://www.podvet.com/blogs/

• University of Limerick Library http://ullb.blogspot.com/

• Dundalk Institute of Technology Library http://dundalkinstitute.library-blogs.net/

•http://www.podvet.com/blogs/

Examples from the wider world

Some Types:

• Subject specific

• Acquisitions/Cataloguing

• Systems

• ILL

• General library news

• Collaborative within the profession

Subject-Specific

Acquisitions

Systems

InterLibrary Loans

Library News (General)

Collaborative Blog across distances

Blog Directories

Blog Directory Wiki

<http://www.blogwithoutalibrary.net>

Library & Information Science Wiki

http://liswiki.org/wiki/Weblogs

Technorati

http://www.technorati.com/

THANK YOU!

Josh Clark Tel: 01 716 7646email: joshua.clark@ucd.ie

Diarmuid Stokes Tel: 01 716 6207email: diarmuid.stokes@ucd.ie

University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4